Comparing Fatal Encounters, Mapping Police Violence, and Washington Post Fatal Police Shooting Data from 2015–2019: A Research Note

This research note empirically assessed similarities and differences among three open-source data sets from 2015-2019. Fatal police shooting incidents were compared across Washington Post, Mapping Police Violence, and Fatal Encounters data over a five-year period. One-way ANOVAs, bivariate correlations, and proportional percentage differences were used to examine mean differences, correlational strength, and yearly percentage difference trends. No significant mean differences were observed between Fatal Encounters, Mapping Police Violence, and Washington Post. With one exception, bivariate correlations between all three data source dyads were consistently strong. Percentage difference comparisons among data source dyads, however, revealed that the sources are becoming more dissimilar in their reporting of fatal shootings over time. Our results complement existing literature that has compared open-source police shooting data to government sources and suggest that the three data sources were strongly associated with one another from 2015-2019. Increasing differences between sources, however, necessitate continued inspection of the data across the various open-source platforms over time.

Examining the Gap Between Prosecutor Attitudes and Decisions: Case Prioritization Through Case Elimination Mechanisms in Driving With a Suspended License Cases

Prosecutors are granted considerable discretion, particularly for misdemeanors. The current study assesses the processing of misdemeanor driving with suspended license (DWSL) cases. Using interview and administrative data from a Florida jurisdiction, the study first examines prosecutorial attitudes about case elimination mechanisms—declination, dismissal, and diversion—then evaluates the extent to which prosecutors’ views about handling DWSL cases and racial disparities in the legal system are reflective of case processing outcomes. Results indicate prosecutors view case prioritization as important, though it is unclear how they achieve it. Despite a reluctance to decline cases when the elements of an offense are supported by evidence, prosecutors acknowledge they cannot pursue all offenses if there is only marginal public safety return. Contemporaneous administrative data show that DWSL cases were routinely pursued in 2017: nearly all DWSL cases were filed, a third were dismissed, and 11% were diverted. Regression analysis also demonstrates that prosecutors’ views on racial and ethnic disparities are somewhat aligned with the case processing decisions for DWSL cases processed in 2017. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for prosecutorial policy, practice, and the effects of prosecutorial discretion for low-level cases on communities.

Inter-Party Competition, Public Electoral Pressure, and Democratic Strength: Refining Political Explanations of Incarceration Trends in the U.S., 1980 – 2010

The purpose of this research is to advance the politics of mass imprisonment literature by testing and specifying the macro-explanations of the state-level incarceration change in the United States (U.S.) between 1980 and 2010. Specifically, I account for mechanisms of inter-party competition and public electoral pressure neglected in prior research. To accomplish this goal, I utilize random coefficient models designed to control for repeated annual measures of state-level data that overwhelm traditional analytic techniques. Findings suggest that violent crime, partisan affiliation of state legislators and governors, probation rates, citizen ideology, marijuana decriminalization, and recidivist-focused laws are associated with incarceration as hypothesized, as well as the African American presence net of crime and socioeconomic disadvantage. Contributing to the theoretical debates on democracy and punishment, this paper demonstrates that inter-party competition and public electoral pressure amplify incarceration in the context of Democratic Party dominance, where no liberalizing effects of competition were found. I conclude that legal and extralegal factors are associated with incarceration and suggest that the public did not oppose criminal justice expansion via democratic feedback mechanisms, so both penal populism (Pratt, 2008) and popular punitivism (Campbell et al., 2017) are valid interpretations of imprisonment politics during the analyzed period.

The Effect of COVID-19 on Domestic Violence and Assaults

The purpose of this research was to examine the effect of COVID-19 on four outcomes including calls for service for domestic violence, calls for service for assaults, arrests for domestic violence, and arrests for assaults in Burlington, Vermont. The data for each outcome collected over the time periods January 2012 through May 2021 were obtained from the Burlington Police Department website and then a monthly time-series data set were created. The analyses including an independent samples t-test, a Poisson regression test, and a monthly interrupted time-series analyses (ITSA) were employed to test the effects of COVID-19 on the previously mentioned outcomes. The results of the ITSA showed that in the first month following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, domestic violence calls statistically significantly increased, but no statistically significant change was observed in domestic violence arrests, while assault calls and assault arrests statistically significantly decreased. In addition, during COVID-19, there was a statistically significant decreasing trend in domestic violence calls and domestic violence arrests, while there was no statistically significant change in the trends of assault calls and assault arrests. The results suggest that COVID-19 had an immediate as well as a persistent effect on the numbers of domestic violence and assaults. The results and limitations of this study were also discussed.

“Take It One Day at a Time and Try to Adjust to What's Going on”: Exonerees’ Advice to the Newly Exonerated and Future Exonerees About Life Post-Release

Wrongful convictions have received increased attention from both scholars and the media over the past several decades. Most of the research on this topic has focused on the factors that contribute to wrongful convictions and policy changes that may help prevent future miscarriages of justice. Scholars have also explored the post-release experiences of those who have been exonerated. Less attention has been paid to the advice exonerees would share with those who have been recently exonerated to help them navigate their new lives. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with individuals who were wrongfully convicted in the southern United States to explore this issue. While acknowledging that the post-exoneration transition could be challenging, the participants noted that they would advise those who are newly exonerated that faith, talking to other exonerees, learning how to be patient with the process, and finding a way to enjoy their new lives were important to navigating this process. This study highlights the value of exploring the perspectives of exonerees to increase our understanding of their experiences, while also using their insight to inform policy that will assist the wrongfully convicted after being exonerated and released from prison.

Recent Legal Developments: Criminal Justice Decisions of the United States Supreme Court, 2,020 Term

In this paper we review and analyze the criminal justice-related decisions of the 2,020 term of the United States Supreme Court. We also provide a summary of the Court’s voting patterns and opinion authorship. Thirteen of the Court’s 57 decisions touched on criminal justice. There were significant decisions involving the Fourth Amendment, the Eighth Amendment, and federal criminal statutes. Each of these is discussed in turn.

COVID-19's Impact on Probation Professionals’ Views About Their Roles and the Future of Probation

In 2020, the COVID-19 global pandemic forced probation departments to change their practices overnight. The phenomenon presented many challenges for probation departments but also opened avenues for innovation and changes in attitudes toward supervision practices. We surveyed adult and juvenile probation departments in the entire state of Texas, specifically targeting management and supervisory personnel, officers with caseloads, including court officers, and information technology personnel ( N = 1,353). Our goals of this research included not only obtaining information about operational changes made because of the pandemic but also gauging attitudes toward these changes and the future of probation. We understood operational changes were inevitable, thus findings of significant operational changes were not surprising. We found that probation personnel were open to changes in operational procedures and that the pandemic spurred innovation and widespread acceptance in the use of technology for a variety of activities going forward that may not have been accepted prior to the pandemic.

Measuring Attitudes Toward Pregnant Women who are Incarcerated in a University Sample

Public attitudes toward people who are incarcerated have been studied; however, there is a paucity of information regarding how the public views pregnant women who are incarcerated. We conducted a quantitative and qualitative assessment investigating attitudes toward pregnant women who are incarcerated and prison conditions at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Participants included 507 students, staff, and faculty who were asked to specifically consider pregnant women who are incarcerated while completing the survey. We found that women, younger people, non-religious or non-Christian individuals, and those with higher levels of formal education perceived pregnant women who are incarcerated more positively and favored less punitive prison conditions. In addition, closer proximity to people who are incarcerated was associated with more positive attitudes toward pregnant women who are incarcerated but was not related to views on prison conditions. Qualitatively, participants reported that considering pregnant women who are incarcerated led them to respond with the same or less negativity than if they had been asked to consider people who are incarcerated as a whole, citing factors such as gender stereotypes and concern for the child. These results can be used as a foundation to understand how students, faculty, and staff at a large Midwestern university perceive pregnant women who are incarcerated and to inform education and policy efforts.

Developmental Trajectories of Justice System-Involved Friendship Proportion: Relevance for Predicting Continued Offending Risk in Emerging Adulthood

There is limited research which has examined the developmental nature of friendships and their relevance for offending. This study examined heterogeneity in the development of justice system-involved friendship proportionality and its relevance for predicting offending continuity in emerging adulthood. Having a greater proportion of such peers within a friendship collective as individuals exit adolescence may lead to continued risk of offending in adulthood. The Pathways to Desistance data were used in analyses. Group-based trajectory modeling was used to identify developmental patterns of justice system-involved friendship proportionality during adolescence and emerging adulthood. Logistic regression was used to assess the relevance of trajectory group assignment for predicting offending risk in emerging adulthood. Findings indicated that a six-group trajectory model best fit the data. All other trajectory groups in the model indicated a lower risk of offending in emerging adulthood than the High Chronic justice system-involved friendship proportionality group. Sensitivity analyses indicated that separation from criminal peers following adolescence may be a more conservative predictor of offending risk in emerging adulthood.